Some people say that the glass on Google's latest flagship smartphone is suddenly shattering

It looks like there’s a strange issue cropping up for some owners of Google’s latest flagship smartphone.

At least two owners of the Nexus 6P have reported that the camera glass on their device has spontaneously shattered.

And this isn’t in response to a sudden bash or drop: It apparently happens with no warning, even when the device isn’t in use. “It was sat on a table next to me when I heard the glass snap, leaving a little snowfall of shavings on the table under it,” one owner wrote on Reddit.

The Nexus 6P is one of Google’s two new flagship smartphones — along with the Nexus 5X. The 6P is manufactured by Huawei, and has been slowly rolling out in different territories since an initial launch in late September.

Here’s how the camera glass is supposed to look on the device:

But here’s a photo of one Reddit owner’s smartphone:

Jonny_rat, the Reddit user who owns the device pictured above, says it happened like so: “Well that was a surprise. For me, and the cat. It was sat on a table next to me when I heard the glass snap, leaving a little snowfall of shavings on the table under it. It’s now continuing to crack away to itself..”

In response to subsequent questions, they say that the seller says the damages aren’t covered under warranty. Happily, the camera itself isn’t affected. “Just tried the camera and.. it’s, er, fine!” they said. “No cracks running across in front of it that I can see. So that’s something.”

A subsequent 6P owner has reported an identical issue:

Backglasscrack123 responded to Jonny_rat’s story by posting a photo of his smartphone, saying that they thought they were the only one this had happened to. “I have a case open with Google which they have forwarded to Huawei.”

What’s the problem?

Right now, it’s not obvious what has caused this apparent issue. We’ve reached out to Google to see if it has any ideas, and will update this story when they respond.

One Reddit user theorises that it is to do with the way that the glass was tempered — introducing “lines of internal torque and stress, leading to explosive results if the glass is impacted or pressed from the wrong angle.”

Another suggests says that “if I had to venture a crazy guess, I’d say the metal expanding and contracting due to heat. But other than that I’m out of ideas.”